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Minor MLB Transactions: 2/28/17

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Here are the day’s minor moves, courtesy of Baseball America’s Matt Eddy:

  • The Marlins added infielder Steve Lombardozzi on a minors deal. He’ll serve as infield depth but doesn’t figure to have much of a shot at cracking the Opening Day roster. Lombardozzi, 28, last appeared in the majors in 2015. He split last year between the independent leagues and the Nationals’ Triple-A affiliate.
  • Another former MLB infielder, 27-year-old Nick Noonan, is headed to the Brewers on a minors pact. He has a fair bit less major league time than does Lombardozzi, but was able to reach the bigs last year with the Padres. Noonan spent most of the season at Triple-A, slashing .301/.338/.427 over 374 plate appearances.
  • The Padres have inked righty Justin De Fratus to a minor-league arrangement. He’s looking to make it back to the majors after spending a portion of 2016 in the upper minors in the Nationals organization. De Fratus, 29, worked to a 5.23 ERA with 7.8 K/9 and 3.5 BB/9 over 20 2/3 innings.
  • Righty Caleb Cotham has agreed to a minor-leaguedeal with the Mariners. He scuffled to a 7.15 ERA in 34 MLB innings over the past two seasons, but has shown more in the past in the upper minors. In 2015, he worked to a 2.21 ERA with 9.6 K/9 and 2.1 BB/9 over 57 innings split between Double-A and Triple-A.
  • The Orioles have struck a minors deal with former farmhand Chris Jones. Now 28, Jones spent the 2016 season with the Angels organization, working to an unsightly 6.92 ERA with 6.1 K/9 and 3.0 BB/9. He had performed better with the O’s, though he has yet to earn his way to the game’s highest level.

Minor MLB Transactions: 6/10/16

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Here are the day’s minor moves from around the league…

  • The Angels announced that both right-hander Javy Guerra and left-hander Chris Jones have cleared waivers and been outrighted to Triple-A Salt Lake after having been designated for assignment earlier this week. Guerra, having previously been outrighted, has the right to reject the assignment in favor of free agency, though he’s already accepted one outright from the Halos this season. Guerra has a 5.68 ERA through just 6 1/3 inning with the Angels this season but has worked to a 2.99 ERA in 156 2/3 innings over the life of his Major League career. The 27-year-old Jones was acquired from the Orioles in a minor trade late in Spring Training and has worked to a 7.33 ERA in 50 1/3 innings at Triple-A this season despite a good deal of prior success at that level. In 390 2/3 innings of Triple-A work, Jones has a 3.66 ERA even after this season’s poor results.

Angels Acquire Jose Valdez, Designate Chris Jones

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The Angels announced that they have acquired right-hander Jose Valdez from the Tigers in exchange for cash considerations. In order to clear a spot on the 40-man roster for Valdez, the Halos have designated left-hander Chris Jones for assignment.

Valdez, 26, has just nine innings of Major League experience, all coming last season with Detroit. However, he’s posted fairly intriguing numbers at the minor league level, including a 3.34 ERA in 67 1/3 innings at Triple-A and a 3.32 ERA in 276 2/3 innings overall. Control has been a persistent problem for Valdez, who has averaged 5.4 walks per nine innings throughout his minor league career. He’s also averaged more than a strikeout per inning, though his ability to miss bats has not yet manifested at the Triple-A level, where he has a 51-to-43 K/BB ratio in those 67 1/3 frames.

Entering the season, Baseball America rated Valdez as Detroit’s No. 23 prospect, praising his “high-octane stuff” and calling both his fastball and slider plus pitches. However, BA also noted that Valdez’s struggles with control often leave him pitching behind in the count.

As for Jones, the 27-year-old was in his first season with the Angels organization, having been acquired in a minor trade late in Spring Training. Previously, Jones spent parts of nine seasons in the minor league systems of the Indians, Braves and Orioles. The former 15th-round pick entered the season with a 3.12 ERA in 340 1/3 innings of Triple-A work, but he’s been rocked for a 7.33 ERA in 50 1/3 innings this season. All told, he has a 3.66 ERA in 390 2/3 innings at Triple-A and a 3.62 ERA in 754 1/3 total minor league frames.

Angels Designate Deolis Guerra, Activate Huston Street

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The Angels announced a series of pitching moves today, including designating righty Deolis Guerra for assignment. Los Angeles also optioned right-hander Mike Morin, replacing those two arms with closer Huston Street — who had been on the DL — and lefty Chris Jones, who gets his first MLB call-up.

Guerra, 27, has been hit hard in two brief stints in the majors over the past two seasons. All told, he’s allowed 16 earned runs in just 22 big league frames, with a more promising 21:3 K/BB ratio. Guerra has been rather dominant at the Triple-A level of late, however.

Los Angeles will be glad to welcome back Street, who last pitched on April 23rd and has been rehabbing an oblique injury. The 32-year-old had been as effective as ever in the early going: despite recording only four strikeouts in his 7 2/3 innings of work before hitting the DL, Street had allowed only one earned run on four hits while picking up a handful of saves. Fill-in ninth-inning man Joe Smith had permitted seven earned runs over his 12 1/3 innings in May, though he also converted five of six save opportunities in the last month.

The 25-year-old Morin has shown promise at times — he carried a 2.90 ERA over 59 frames in 2014 and racked up 10.4 K/9 against just 2.3 BB/9 in 35 1/3 innings last year — but his results have lagged of late. On the year, he’s been touched for a 5.48 ERA in 21 1/3 frames, with 7.6 K/9 against 2.1 BB/9.

Jones hasn’t exactly had the best of years at Triple-A since being acquired from the Orioles late this spring. He’s generally been effective there in the past, but currently owns a 6.32 ERA over 47 innings with 5.9 K/9 against 2.7 BB/9.

Angels Acquire Chris Jones From Orioles

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The Orioles announced that they have acquired minor league outfielder Natanael Delgado and infielder Erick Salcedo from the Angels in exchange for right-hander Chris Jones.

Jones, 27, was designated for assignment less than a week ago.  Now, he has been traded for the third time in his career.  As Tim Dierkes noted on Wednesday, Jones was sent by the Indians to the Braves in October 2011 in the Derek Lowe trade. In April 2013, he was traded from Atlanta to the Orioles for Luis Ayala.  Last year, Jones made 22 starts and eight relief appearances for the Orioles’ Triple-A affiliate.  In that span, he posted a 2.94 ERA with 6.3 K/9 and 1.7 BB/9.  Jones will help provide rotational depth in Triple-A, according to Jeff Fletcher of the Orange County Register (on Twitter).

Delgado, 20, was ranked as the No. 27 prospect in the Angels’ system after the 2014 season by Baseball America.  Delgado signed with the Angels for $280K in 2012 and has tacked on muscle mass and strength since then, per BA.  Blessed with “extremely strong hands and above-average bat speed,” Baseball America believes that he’ll have to improve his hitting in order to have value going forward.

Salcedo, 23 in June, has seen time at shortstop, second base, third base, center field, and right field in the minors.  The Orioles’ press release indicates that his future will be in the infield, however.  Salcedo was ranked as the Angels’ No. 27 prospect after the 2013 season by BA.

Orioles Sign Zach Phillips, Designate Chris Jones

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The Orioles have signed lefty Zach Phillips to a one-year deal, announced the team.  To clear a spot on the 40-man roster, they designated southpaw Chris Jones for assignment.  MLBTR has learned that Phillips received a Major League deal worth $510K.  Phillips is represented by Matt Colleran.

Phillips, 29, elected free agency last week after the White Sox removed him from their 40-man roster.  He has just 15 2/3 innings of big league experience, which came from 2011-13.  Last year at Triple-A Charlotte, Phillips posted a 3.13 ERA, 10.5 K/9 and 3.3 BB/9 in 54 2/3 innings, allowing just one home run.  He spent 2014 with the Hiroshima Carp.  The Rangers took Phillips as a draft-and-follow out of Sacramento City College in 2004, trading him to the Orioles in July 2011 for Nick Green.  Phillips told reporters including Roch Kubatko of MASNsports.com this morning, “I’ve always wanted to come back here and I thought it was a great time to. Just being familiar with Baltimore and them giving me a chance. I’ve always liked it here and thought it would be good to come back.”

Phillips “has a good chance to make the Orioles,” writes Rich Dubroff of CSN Mid-Atlantic.  As noted by MLB.com’s Brittany Ghiroli on Twitter, the Orioles have a potential bullpen opening because of an injury to Brian Matusz.  According to Eduardo A. Encina of the Baltimore Sun, Matusz has been dealing with a lower back strain and just received a cortisone injection, putting Opening Day in jeopardy.  The Orioles kick off their season at home against the Twins on April 4th.  Their bullpen should otherwise include Zach Britton, Darren O’Day, Brad Brach, Mychal Givens, Dylan Bundy, and one more reliever from a handful of options.

Jones, 27, put up a 2.94 ERA, 6.3 K/9, 1.7 BB/9, and 0.90 HR/9 in 150 Triple-A innings last year.  That represented his third career stint at Triple-A.  Jones was drafted by the Indians in the 15th round in 2007.  He was traded to the Braves in October 2011 for Derek Lowe, and was later shipped to Baltimore for Luis Ayala in April 2013.  The O’s released Jones in February 2014 upon signing Nelson Cruz, re-signing the lefty to a minor league deal shortly thereafter.  He rejoined Baltimore’s 40-man roster last November, and had been reassigned to minor league camp early last week.

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